Sue Busby

Artist Statement

Art has been a part of my life for most of my life in the mediums of photography, painting and ceramics as I hold a bachelor and master degree in the arts from the University of Southern Mississippi. I have also taught art in the public schools for many years, exposing students to the arts. Since retirement and becoming widowed I have devoted my free time to painting. In the past I painted with watercolor and acrylic but have been committed to mixing cold wax and oil and painting on a variety of sub straights such as paper, cradled panel, birch plywood and Yupo paper. I apply the layers of paint using a tear drop shaped silicon bowl scraper which can be used as a palette knife to spread paint over large areas or to use the scraper to apply fine lines of detail. At times I will add to the cold wax and oil a small amount of galkid and walnut oil to allow the paint to dry slower especially when painting on Yupo paper since the paint mix drys quicker with the addition of cold wax. As a final finish to the very dry paintings I will apply a thin layer of cold wax and allow it to dry overnight then buff it with a soft cloth to bring out a shine to the finished painting which also adds another permanent layer to the completed painting.
Along with my works in cold wax and oil I have also painted with encaustic, hot wax and pigment which has been another exciting medium I've been working with. Another medium that consists of bees wax and danmar resin mixed with pigments. In this painting process the colored wax is melted to just under 180 degrees and usually applied with a brush. each layer then has to be fused to the bottom layer using heat. I use either a propane torch or heat gun to do the fusing before adding the next layer of color. This ancient process has been found in tombs of ancient mummies. I enjoy using this medium as well since it has many technical possibilities for creating art. I apply several layers of encaustic gesso to either a board or cradled panel, then at least 5 layers of encaustic medium which is a mix of beeswax and danmar resin to then begin my painting process of layers of colored wax.
during this process I can add textures and also dry on top of the wax using R&F paint sticks and Taylors chalk then fusing into the under layers. After the encaustic painting is finished and has cured for a week or two I then polish the surface with a soft cloth which intensifies the colors and adds a gloss finish to the surface.